Tattoo Studios
Third-floor studio in Aberdeen Square, open daily in the afternoons. A quieter, mall-based alternative to a storefront shop, doing custom pieces and smaller fine-line work for a mostly local Richmond clientele.
There is no window onto the street here, and for some people that is the entire appeal. Ink'stone works from the third floor of Aberdeen Square, in the same tower of small suites that holds the clinics and studios above the station, so nobody walking past sees you sitting for a piece and the upper floors stay quiet even when the Golden Village below is at full volume.
Tattoo studios in Vancouver mostly live on Main Street, Commercial Drive or Hastings, in storefronts with big windows and a walk-in culture. Richmond does it differently. For a first tattoo, or for anyone who finds a busy storefront intimidating, that privacy is worth something real. The work runs to custom pieces and smaller fine-line designs for a mostly local clientele.
Fine-line work deserves a word of its own, because it ages differently from bold traditional styles, and the artists who do it well tend to be specific about placement for exactly that reason. Listen to them on that point. Bring reference images, be honest about your pain tolerance and your schedule, and expect a consultation before anything happens on skin. Aberdeen station sits directly below the building, so arriving without a car is simple, and the train beats fighting the Golden Village lots on a weekend. Make contact before turning up, since a free chair is not something to gamble an afternoon on.
In the Golden Village neighbourhood of Richmond.
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Other tattoo studios and nearby businesses in the Richmond directory.
Steveston Village shop with four resident artists covering traditional American, Japanese, realism and neotraditional work. Custom design is the default rather than flash off the wall, and consultations are part of the process.
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A small pickup-only bakery on No. 3 Road working from a short rotating list of cakes and pastries. Order online or at the counter and collect at the store; their products also turn up at a couple of other Richmond dessert shops. Closed Mondays.
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